Piano!! :)

We made a surprise trip to Katherine this past Sunday, because there wasn't church in Barunga. We visited the Baptist church in Katherine, and saw some friends there as well.
I haven't played the piano for months now, and my fingers were longing to play! When we visited the church, I was allowed to play their electric piano! YAY!!! :) After church we were invited to a couple's house for lunch, AND THEY HAD A PIANO TOO! So, I got to play the piano twice this past Sunday. What a blessing. :)

How Many Sons Do I Have? (up in that tree)

I'm learning more and more about the kinship system every day. Without this system, the community wouldn't run properly. It is so deeply ingrained in the people that society is run through the relationships they have to everyone else.
We have a trampoline in our backyard, and it has become a favorite hangout for many of the kids in Barunga. One of the rules in using the trampoline is when it is getting dark, it's time for everyone to get off and go home. We have placed the trampoline under the shade of a mango tree so it's not as hot.
One evening as it was getting dark I went out to the tree and said, "Okay, it's getting dark! Everyone needs to go home." There were several boys up in the tree sitting and jumping on to the trampoline, but they didn' t move. Then I asked, "How many sons do I have up in that tree?" I heard, "Me, Dedi!" and a few other affirmations, then one boy said, "Four sons, Dedi!" So I said, "I need you to go home, it's dark now." They then went home with no fuss, right away.
This made me wonder if it was just a random happening, or if that was a consistent part of culture that we were now entering in to. As time has passed, more and more of the kids here are calling me "dedi"-daddy, and I call them son, or daughter. Just another opportunity to learn more about the depth of this system, the kinship system among the people here. We'll be keeping our ears open and keep track of all our "relatives" as time goes on.

Just for Fun, an "old" video from Alice's 5th Birthday!

This video is from Alice's 5th Birthday when we were up in Darwin. I call it, "Northern Territory Sledding." Who needs snow, right?


So, there ya go. God bless--and enjoy the snow!

"Brabli Strongwan Pramis!"

"I will put my law in their minds and write it on their hearts..."
"Brabli strongwan pramis!" 'John' told me as he pointed out each word to the passage in Jeremiah 31:33-34. There were tears in his eyes as he read the passage in the Kriol Baibul over again, and another time. I asked him, "What does it mean?" and he rapped on his chest, and said,(in Kriol) "He will write His laws on our hearts. We won't need to go to the surrounding communities and tell people about Jesus, because they will know!"
He then pointed to verse 34, one word at a time, "Nomo enibodi garra titjimbat im ronwan kantrimen hau blanga sabi YAWEI, dumaji ebribodi garra sabi mi, nomeda olabat lobala o powan o boswan..." As he read it, it was as if his heart was longing for the day when EVERYONE would know God. "Whether low, or poor, or rich..."
And then he continued to read, "Ai garra larramgo olabat fri brom olabat nogudbalawei, en ai kaan jinggabat ol detlot nogudwan ting weya olabat bin oldei dumbat. Mi na YAWEI bin tok dijan."
BIG smile.
"For I will forgive their wickedness and will remember their sins no more."

Praise the Lord, He continues to speak through His Word to the hearts of His people! And praise the Lord that we get to be a part of this work. :) Thank you for your continued prayers and support for us, John, and all the Kriol believers who long to see the day when ALL believers are gathered together to praise God as a single Body!

Please pray for continued growth, and understanding of Scripture for the believers we are working alongside, and for our ability to share with them clearly in Kriol. Also, please pray they would continue to study God's Word even after the workshop is finished on the 12th, so they can continue to grow and learn.

Bigmob Biginini

We had between 6-9 biginini (children) join us for lasagne tonight. It wasn't what we were expecting, but we knew someone was coming for dinner! At about 4 o'clock they started to arrive to play with our kids. They were in and out of the house, jumping on the trampoline, playing with the puppies, playing guitar(though we didn't get too far before it was time to eat!)...
We were expecting a man I had met just a couple of days ago to come over to our house for dinner. God had prepared us for this kind of thing before, so, we talked about it and decided we would make a large meal, "just in case" he came with his family! He ended up not coming, but we had a bigmob biginini eating with us tonight. God is good. :) AND WE GOT TO PRAY IN KRIOL WITH THEM!

Anwers to prayer!

Yesterday was an encouraging day. We found out that the school here in Barunga stores AN ABUNDANCE of KRIOL BOOKS/ little study things for children! PLUS we have attended a "Kriol time" at the school on Thursdays before. Really neat, but only once a week. HOWEVER we found out that they Kriol learning time is actually Monday through Thursday EVERY WEEK!!! We only knew about Thursdays, because that is the day Alice has it. We were invited by the principal to come to any of them, or ALL of them! WHAT AN AWESOME DISCOVERY FOR LANGUAGE LEARNERS!!! :)
Plus, we will hopefully be having a man over for "Tea"(dinner, supper, evening meal) tomorrow! Thanks for praying and PRAISE THE LORD WITH US! :) Keep praying.

God bless y'all!

-Jared

Sori Dei :(

This past week, the kids at school had a "Sori Dei"(Sorry Day). Here in community this is the second Sori Dei we have been a part of. Sori Dei takes place whenever someone dies who lives (or lived) in the community. Because there are so many relations within the community, on a Sori Dei, school is cancelled for everyone so the family can mourn their loss.
The Sori Dei can happen in each of the communities where the deceased had family. So, this past week school was cancelled in Barunga as well as in our neighboring community, Beswick. As we learn more about it, I'll share with you more!

Prayer Update! :)

Dear Prayer Partners,
Thank you so much for your faithful prayers and support of the ministry God has called our family to join in Australia. Without your prayers, I know things would not be happening as well as they are right now. There is much to praise God for, as well as much to pray about! It is a blessing to have so many people regularly praying for our family, and very humbling as well. Thank you for serving with our family.

Praise God!!

1. We have been praying for a language helper to aid us in our Kriol learning, and a woman in a neighboring community has volunteered to help us one day a week!

2. Last Tuesday we had “smoke-o”(coffee break) at our house with the wekinmen(workers) of the community. We were expecting 3-4 people, but God brought the men! We ended up with 11 dirty cups! :) Praise God! We were also able to have a Kriol Baibul Study with the two ladies who came.

3. God has blessed us to live in this community. Our family is adjusting well here, and have really felt at home here. That is a HUGE praise.

Please Pray with Us:

1. From November 3rd-12th the Kriol Team is having a workshop called, “Sabi Mowa Blanga Godwei” or “Know More About God’s Way”. It’s adapted from the YWAM “SALT/BELT” course. Jared will be observing it for a couple of days during the second week. Please pray for the leaders of this course to teach clearly(in Kriol).
a. The non-indigenous leaders from our team are: John, Rachel, Margaret, and Lisa.
b. Pray for the indigenous folks to step into leadership positions, grow in their leadership abilities and in their walks with God.

2. Though we had a wonderful group last Tuesday, please pray for the same to happen each week. It is a great way to build relationships with the men in the community for Jared, and as they get to know us more, pray they would be interested in talking about God. Pray for Jared as he considers how best to use this “cuppateatime” for language learning and relationship building. Pray for us each Tuesday…(or Monday evening your time!)

3. Please pray for God to raise up men to lead in the church. The ladies of the church are wonderful, but God has called men to step up and take leadership! Pray for men to be drawn to Himself and begin following him with all their hearts.

4. Pray for Cheri and me as we continue to learn Kriol. Pray we would be diligent in our study and reading of the Kriol Baibul. Specifically, please pray for a good male friend for Jared to build a relationship with to learn Kriol. Living life with them and experiencing their traditional ways is a great way to learn the language, pray for those opportunities to present themselves to our family.

5. Please pray Bethany. She has not slept through the night for a long time. She comes into our bedroom every night at least once. This is wearing on us, and I’m sure it wears on Bethy too. Pray for good, deep sleep for Bethany.
Thank you so much for battling with our family through prayer.

Serving Together,

Jared, Cheri, Alice, Bethany and Cameron